


The worth of a soul

by Alexa_Piper



Series: The Notebook - Unrelated Danny Phantom Oneshots from 2013 to 2019 [3]
Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Gen, Mentions of Suicide, backdated fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-07
Updated: 2013-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:53:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27209932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alexa_Piper/pseuds/Alexa_Piper
Summary: What does Danny do sneaking out at night when there are no ghosts to fight?
Series: The Notebook - Unrelated Danny Phantom Oneshots from 2013 to 2019 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1986457
Kudos: 10





	The worth of a soul

Clenching her teeth, the woman hauled herself over the safety rail. Winter wind tugged at her shirt, chilling the woman to her core as she leaned forwards. Her fingers were wrapped around the rail at her back, anchoring her as she suspended herself over the darkness below. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as tears coursed down wind-whipped cheeks.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed into the empty air, loosening her fingers.

"Well, you should be," a voice sounded from… _in front of her?_

The woman opened her eyes, yelping and scrambling to press back against the bridge's safety rail. Floating before her, in that empty space far above the river swollen from winter storms, was a figure cloaked in tattered black. Strapped to its back was a common harvesting scythe, and the creature's arms were folded across its chest in a clear gesture of irritation. She could almost _feel_ the glare from beneath that cowl…

"Don't you know how precious your life is?" the reaper-esque figure demanded.

She pressed her trembling form harder against the railing. "I-I…"

"Do you know how many people you were about to _hurt?!_ "

If she hadn't been so distressed, the woman might have noticed that the echoing voice cracked. As it was, she simply stood and shivered in the winter wind.

"Here," the ghost – for what else could it have been? – sighed, producing a jacket from within its cloak and holding it out. When the woman made no move to accept it, he wrapped it around her shoulders. "Now, why don't I lift you back over that barrier and we can talk?"

She stared at him with wild eyes. "Y-y-you… G-Grim Reaper…"

A visible shrug. "That's neither here nor there."

"Why is the _Grim Reaper_ stopping me from killing myself?!" she screamed, making no move to wipe at tears that continued to stream down her cheeks. "I'm a worthless failure who couldn't even keep the one man I've ever cared about!"

"Is it really worth it to throw your life away because of one stupid bloke?"

The demand struck her hard, and the woman's washed-out blue eyes widened. "He was my _everything!_ "

"It's dangerous to make one thing your everything," the figure commented, moving into a position that made it look like it sat on an invisible chair in mid-air. "It's far better to spread yourself over several things, you know? There's joy to be found in even the darkest of places."

She snorted. "No, there's not. How can there be joy and beauty _here_ , at Amity Park's suicide hotspot?"

"Well, there is if you can find it."

"Why look?" she demanded. "Why bother?!"

A shrug. "What is there to lose simply by looking at the beauty around you?"

"There _is_ no beauty around me!" she screamed, fingers tightening around the banister. "Don't you get it? I'm ugly, just like this godforsaken bridge! Nobody loves me!"

The creature stiffened. "I want you to think _really_ hard," he told her gently. "Look at me, and tell me once again that you're ugly and that nobody loves you."

She looked up and told him just that.

The spectre sighed, moving to float inches from her. "Everything has beauty in it," he insisted, cupping her cheek momentarily in a white-gloved hand that extended from beneath the cloak. "Is there anyone in your life who even smiles at you?"

She sniffed before nodding hesitantly. "There's… Well, I suppose that there's the guy in the apartment next door."

"Tell me about him."

She leaned against the banister, looking up at the fading moon and smiling as the wind tore at her tousled blonde curls. "He's in his eighties, and his wife died last year. He comes over sometimes, and I make him a cuppa, and he likes to try and teach me how to play cards. He doesn't really have anyone, you know?"

"And you're just going to leave him?"

The question stilled her selfish thoughts. "I…" Turning to face the ghost, she felt fresh tears slip down freezing cheeks. "Oh my gosh… I-I almost…" Her voice breaking, the woman let out a sob, collapsing against the banister. "I almost…"

A freezing hand brushed the tears away. "There, see? A reason to live." He lifted her into strong arms, floating to the safe side of the rail. "Now, how about you go home, and have a nice hot shower to warm up."

"What happens when he dies?" she blurted as she was set on her own feet again. "He's not going to be around forever, since he's got inoperable cancer!"

He tilted his head. "Find a new reason to live. Make friends. Maybe the local yoga centre or book club? That's what the last person I spoke to decided on, anyway."

"Yes," she muttered, furrowing her brow, "that actually sounds like a really good idea."

Not hearing her, the spectre continued. "My sister always comes home from the Scrabble group with really entertaining stories, and one of my old friends is often meeting up with her martial arts buddies-"

"You're not the Grim Reaper, are you?"

The ghost seemed to tense. "Uh, what makes you say that?"

A burst of self-righteous anger added heat to her accusation. "What, do you just patrol this bridge and pretend to be some all-powerful personification of Death?!"

He held up a hand. "Just so you know, Death isn't actually all-powerful – he's kind of annoying in fact – but I guess that's not really what this is about."

"Take off the cowl," she demanded.

To her surprise, he did just that.

" _Phantom?!_ "

He shrugged sheepishly. "Yeah, so?"

"You… you just hang out here and talk people out of suicide?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, there're no ghosts trying to invade right now, and it's not like I'm busy or anything, so why shouldn't I?"

"Why? And if you answer with another question, I'll call the local hunters on you."

Phantom looked hurt at this. "Hey, I haven't done anything wrong!" he exclaimed, moving to sit on the banister with his back to her, legs dangling out over the river far below.

She walked over, leaning against the rail. "Sorry, I shouldn't have threatened you."

He shrugged, clearing his throat. "I failed once. Back in high school, I was a bit of a loser. That had its advantages, since I could see what went on with everyone instead of being absorbed in the popular group's affairs.

"Well, there was this one girl in the group, and she practically orbited the main girl. One day, she came to school and was really nice to everyone, including us losers. Nobody knew what to make of the sudden compliments that she gave everyone she saw, and no-one said anything nice back.

"That night, she jumped off this bridge. She'd left a note for everyone – all it said was that she felt ugly and unwanted."

His shoulders trembled, and the woman watched in wonder as a glowing tear slipped down Phantom's cheek. "I should have complimented her back when she told me that I was a really sweet guy," he whispered. "It haunts me to this day that I couldn't just tell her that she was really nice as well. It would have only taken a few seconds!" He blinked, seeming to suddenly realise what he was doing. "Oh, sorry! I'm supposed to be helping you find happiness again, but all I'm doing is dumping my own problems on you!"

"No, I wanted to know, remember?"

He shook his head. "That doesn't mean that I should've told you."

She smiled. "Well, you might not have saved her, but you _have_ saved me."

Phantom started, swinging around to stare at her with burning emerald eyes. "Really?!"

"Yeah, you have. I… I'll always look for a reason to live, 'kay?"

A grin crinkled the edges of his eyes. "Thank you," he breathed.

"No, thank _you,_ " she insisted, throwing slim arms around his torso and pulling the startled ghost into a hug.

When they broke apart, Phantom was smiling so brightly that she simply had to mirror it.

"Oh!" he exclaimed, swinging to face the horizon. "Look, I _told_ you that there's beauty here!"

The woman turned in the direction he had, eyes locked on the colour that slowly began to spread across the lightening sky. "You're right." She leaned against the railing, drinking in the birth of a sunrise. "Thank you, Phantom."

When no reply was forthcoming, she faced the space beside her. The ghost was gone, leaving nothing but empty air and a quiet "Keep the jacket."


End file.
